give sb hell
informalIf someone gives you hell, they criticize you severely:
She gave me hell for being 20 minutes late.
If something gives you hell, it causes you a lot of pain:
These new shoes are giving me hell.
Thesaurus: synonyms and related words
Disapproving & criticizing
- -basher
- animadversion
- aspersions
- backbite
- bad-mouth
- belabour
- damn
- damn sb with faint praise idiom
- denounce
- dig
- disapproval
- lashing
- nagging
- pitch into sb/sth
- pound
- pound away at sth/sb
- pull sth apart
- put the boot in idiom
- take a dim view of sth idiom
- throw
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You can also find related words, phrases, and synonyms in the topics:
Pain & painful